The Prize of Victory
by your-biohazardous-friend
Summary: The Black Knight's Providence had crumbled down both literally and in figurative speech. Yet why, in such joyful moment, the victory has left a bitter after-taste on Rex's tongue?
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer:**_ I _**do not**_ own GeneratorREX – if I did the show would definitely be ranked **R** rather than PG.

A/N1: I find this pairing… fascinating.

A/N2: List of my head-canons is so long and so beautiful.

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><p><strong>The prize of victory<strong>

By _your-biohazardous-friend_

"_If I had to and I could ever make_

_My death-wish_

_It's not a secret and I know it well_

_I'd like to die by your side"_

/ _I'd Like To Die Of Love_ by Myslovitz/

The dust and sand were still in the air - unsettled. Yet Rex didn't care less, as he took a deep breath of hot, dry air. The deflect group has won! Black Knight has been overthrown… Maybe half of the building had collapsed in the process but it can be repaired easily. Younger Salazar couldn't wait till White would again start to officially boss him around as Providence agent. The curing E.V.O. stood proudly on a heap of junk, which just few hours ago was a briefing room. He watched as Providence agents were treating their wounded colleagues, clearing a rubble in the swarm of bodies Rex noticed a person – or more precisely: his brother - rushing toward him.

"I request the highest of fives, bro" Rex announced proudly, rising his hand in the air, anticipating some sort of a positive feedback. Yet there were no embarrassing hugs nor family-nicknames. Caesar didn't emit any dis- or approval sounds. The scientist only run past him, roughly showing confused teen aside. It was the first time since Rex remembered that his older brother treated him like a stranger.

"HELEN!" Rex heard his brother shout behind his back. The younger sibling turned in his direction. The man was now desperately digging with his bare hands through the rubble of fallen building, cutting his hands over shattered glass, sharp edges of heavy chunks of concrete and broken steel pipes.

After a time, which for some were just mare seconds while for others were an eternity, the scientist reached the fallen Providence leader. With tenderness and caution that younger sibling had never seen his brother having toward anyone – even himself - the Latin-American gently took the woman in his arms.

Rex wanted to turn his head after finally noticing the horrifying state the woman was actually in: her body was ragged, torn, broken, pierced, cut and soiled with blood and dirt. Just a quick glance was enough to force teen's bile to rise up, gagging up his throat. Yet the teenager couldn't look away as Black Knight brought her hand toward Caesar's face and brushed his cheek lightly, as if wiping away tears that were yet to come. Her lips curled into a warm smile. She looked like totally different person, not headstrong, ruthless leader but a kind, gentle...

"Helen, please" Caesar whispered, his hand froze in the air, as if he was unsure where to press first to stop blood from escaping her body.

"hush, Caesar" she whispered back - her voice was faint and trebling.

Rex's eyes went wide. He finally understood why his brother – against all odds - remained loyal to the Black Knight. There was no brainwashing, collars, microchips nor robot replacements as Rex expected. The answer for Caesar's behaviour was too surreal in it's simplicity to be true. Rex couldn't believe that he has never considered, during all of his hatred fuelled broodings, that this most natural form of attachment _could_ form between those two.

Yet it did...

Caesar Salazar – an individual so intelligent yet so naïve in his own special way- _fell in love_ with one of the most ruthless leaders of Providence. What surprised Rex the most was that the feelings were mutual.

Rex finally managed to turn away from the pair as a new found understanding and determination won over astonishment. The E.V.O. morphed his legs into his ride – he had do something.

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><p>comments, advices, constructive criticism etc. are always <strong>welcomed<strong> and **appreciated**!


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer:**_ I _**do not**_ own GeneratorREX – if I did the show would definitely be ranked **R** rather than PG.

Beware of AUs and OOCs. But do not fret overally this story IS readable

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><p><strong>The Prize of Victory:<strong>

**Chapter 2**

By _your-biohazardous-friend_

"_Bye, bye baby._

_Don't be long._

_I'll worry about you while you're gone."_

**/**_Worry About You_** - **Ivy**/**

Rex was concern about his brother. For the first time ever he found Caesar being silent and outside his lab for more than three hours. The scientist's face was stern and weary with knitted brows and clenched jaw. His, now properly treated, hands were clasped with each other. He looked as if he was praying. Maybe he was… Younger Salazar approached his brother and stretched his hand toward him offering a mug of hot cocoa. The scientist took it to which Rex sat next to him – having his own mug. They were sitting like this for a while – one copying the pose of the other.

"so how?... did you…? you two? You know…?" Rex asked dumbly – not even knowing what he really wanted to ask about. All he wanted was a sufficient explanation.

"we didn't… have sex, if it's what you ask" Caesar answered, wrongly guessing the initial idea of the question. The statement, as ridiculous as it was, ringed in the quiet corridor in front of ICE. Rex looked at his brother with eyes wide opened, the blush quickly creeping at his cheeks, he quickly took a nervous sip from his mug to cover his embarrassment.

"bah! we didn't kiss or even… hold hands" the man continued "every night, or was it early in the morning? She would come by to my lab, just to sit in the corner and drink green tea" Caesar busted out with dry laughter "we weren't even talking – she was just sitting there"

It was still ridiculous for Rex: Caesar having feelings towards something- some_one_ other than science.

"it doesn't matter now" older sibling said "Now she's dea-"

"She's not dead…" Rex snapped at him "BK is just in coma – that doesn't make her dead!"

"She's in critical state" Caesar's grip on his much tightened

Younger Salazar bit his lips and nodded. He knew the statistic all to well.

"Furthermore her spine is shattered" the man continued "I don't even want to _think_ about the outcomes of _that_" Caesar replied, his voice somehow cracking. Younger sibling could swear he heard the mug _crunching_ in his brother's grip.

There was silence between the brothers for a while.

"When you were wounded – back then before the nanite event - you had fifty percentage of survival with thirty percentage of full recovery without nanites in your body, after their infusion your chances were ninety on survival and eighty of full recovery – and still we were all _FREAKED OUT_ about that." The older sibling finally said.

No wonder Caesar consider Black Knight as 'dead' – her statistic were far worst than his had ever been.

"If you already consider her… gone… I- I don't want to state the obvious, bro, but you _love_ BK, you can't go back to _logical-conclusion-mode_ about her anymore." Rex took a sip from his mug then continued "I mean… Why you're sitting here and not being in your lab building some contraptions? Like a… I don't know! A powered exoskeleton which helps people break-dance or something…"

"what did you say?" Caesar interrupted his brother, his eyes widening.

"you love BK?" Rex answered awkwardly, but before he could confirm if that what Caesar wanted to hear – the older man dashed from his spot. The mug shattered into tiny pieces as it missed Rex's hands in which it was suppose to land.

A week has passed since the faithful conversation. Black Knight – or rather Helen Lemkova – one again proved that she is indeed a very strong-willed woman and those small chances of survival she had were heavily underestimated. Even being paralysed from waist down the woman quickly began to get on all nurses' nerves, bossing them around as if they were mare Providence agents.

First thing the woman did was officially resigning from her position of a Providence leader. Helen excused herself of being dysfunctional due her new disabilities. The border accepted her refusal and even send her their best regards. The woman only crumpled the letter – tossing it to the bin, with ideal 3 points worth shoot (Rex bit his lip from jealousy after witnessing that). Now eyes of the consortium turned back to White Knight – the man smirked triumphal, and to everyone's confusion, declined the offer.

As everything finally calmed down, Rex was more or less the only visitor Helen really had. The woman herself was more nicer to him now, than what she had been during her Providence career. During their hours long checkers' tournaments both of them were chatting about everything and yet nothing. Helen asked about weather… and Caesar too. Rex didn't know how to answer.

Because Caesar was nowhere to be found.

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><p>comments, advices, constructive criticism etc. are always <strong>welcomed<strong> and **appreciated**!


	3. Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer:**_ I _**do not**_ own GeneratorREX – if I did the show would definitely be ranked **R** rather than PG.

A/N1: Beware of shameless _**AU**_ and OOCs. But do not fret, overally this story IS readable.

A/N2: I planned this story to have four chapters + possible Epilogue

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><p><strong>The Prize of Victory:<strong>

**Chapter 3**

By _your-biohazardous-friend_

"_someone told me yesterday_

_That when you throw your love away_

_You act as if you don't care_

_You look as if you're going somewhere_"

/**So Lonely** - The Police /

The _Discovery Science_ channel was practically the only TV station currently running at ex-Knight's hospital room. When nurse asked her once why this particular channel interest her so much, Helen lied. Feeding the gossip fuelled woman that she is was simply interested in science. Rex however knew the truth. Caesar had always been a man who, wanting it or not, came across media one way or another. He could be passing by in a swarm of scientists in Dubai, maybe be a leading scientist in France or any other European country. Maybe he would re-surface as a 'one man show' somewhere in either of the Americas? Rex was aware of that, so was Helen. Thus _Discovery Science_ was on all the time.

But this time Caesar hid himself well from news reporters. It were weeks since the whole Providence mess. The Consortium already picked up another Knight. No-one bothered to check which shade the new leader had. Rex sighed disappointed as he moved white checker over the board hearing yet another interview with Branden Moses who became Providence new main researcher.

As ex-Knight was suppose to make another victorious move over the board, her hand stopped in mid air. Rex looked at her worriedly, the woman's eyes were widened and glued to the TV screen, mouth slightly agape. The teenager followed her gaze. The transmission was from Iraq, where, right now, the group of scientists were presenting a prototype of exoskeleton created to enhance battle capability of it's user, the scientists were cheering happily as the man inside the machine was taking his first steps with ease. Nothing would be odd in this picture except the one scientist standing further away from the rest. Rex's eyes widened as recognized the familiar figure in the camera view.

_Caesar._

The Latin-American was leaning over a tree. He was wearing a, somehow charred, sandy coloured military overalls, his working goggles were loosely hanging on his neck right above, already beaten up, identification tags. He was drinking casually from metal water bottle, glaring at the research crew sceptically, visibly not pleased of the project's outcomes. There was no turmoil in his eyes, no longing. He acted as if nothing ever happened, as if he had always been in Iraq building exoskeletons. As if he had no brother nor… person he loved in the past. Then one of the scientists, petite, black haired woman, noticed his frown. She quickly separated herself from the rest, catching up with him. They've chatted a while, exchanging laughs and friendly gestures. At the end of the conversation the woman patted his shoulder encouragingly, then they both took their leave. The transmission ended with remaining scientists opening a bottle of Champaign, the cork popped out of the neck of a bottle with loud pop. The stream of foam busted out and was welcomed by even more cheering and laughter.

A suffocating silence fell on the room. Helen looked stupefied at the ending credits of the news show, with a black checker still in between her fingers.

"you're heartless, Caesar" Black Knight finally said out loud, throwing a object in her hand toward the screen – missing it miserably "you're heartless, like machines you're building"

As much as Rex wanted not to, he had to admit Black Knight was right.

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><p>comments, advices, constructive criticism etc. are always <strong>welcomed<strong> and **appreciated**!


	4. Chapter 4

_**Disclaimer:**_ I _**do not**_ own GeneratorREX – if I did the show would definitely be ranked **R** rather than PG.

**A/N1:** Beware of AU and OoC-ness. But do not fret overally this story IS readable.

**A/N2:** I've started to write this fic before certain stuff happened *ekhhhemmmEndgame1&2andbeyond* thus I've left out some aspects of few characters.

**A/N4:** in my head canon, Black Knight is Russian by origin and/or being partly/fully raised in Russia even though, unlike Caesar, she doesn't have a 'proper accent' in the cartoon.

**A/N5:** I sometimes wonder, do you check out the songs of which lyrics are quoted in fanfictions?

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><p><strong>The Prize of Victory:<strong>

**Chapter 4**

By _your-biohazardous-friend_

"_I'm a young soul in this very strange world_

_Hoping I could learn a bit 'bout what is true and fake_

_But why all this hate? try to communicate_

_Finding trust and love is not always easy to make"_

/New Soul; Yael Naim/

For next couple of days, Helen redirected her broken heart into Rex. She barely spoke to him while every checker challenge was nonchalantly refused with a pout. The boy felt remorse – even if he shouldn't really had. To tell the truth, the younger Salazar felt responsible for Ex-Knight's well-being, he practically saved her, waited during all the operations she had, helping any way he could, Hell! he was Caesar's brother for crying out loud! – he felt moral obligation to continue and succeed his personal 'crusade'. After few days of Helen's literal brooding and wallowing in self-pity, Rex decided to try to approach her once more and stop woman's misery. He even bough a new board game, just in case ex-Knight wouldn't want to play checkers ever again. It was a smooth move. Helen, even if heartbroken, was bored to death and hungry for challenges.

Everything seemed to get back on the old tracks, except that TV was now turned off, and would continue to be this way if not that, one day, Caesar himself stood in the doors of Helen's hospital room. Rex wasn't that confused seeing Ex-Knight almost plain furious. Caesar was an opposition, dressed in proper, formal attire, had bunch of flowers in his hands and face of kicked, absent-minded puppy. The older brother shoot his younger sibling a helpless glare – '_should I come in?_' his eyes seemed to ask. Rex shrugged his arms. Caesar stepped inside.

The whole scene made Rex chuckle with amusement. It reminded him of a teenage romance movie he once watched with Noah. Helen was deliberately looking at the window with her arms crossed, pretending to not to care about Caesar's efforts to say anything fitting the awkward situation he was currently in. His mouth was opening and closing like of fish taken out from the water as he searched for right words. Even if they finally met, those several weeks later, too many things were done with no explanation said. At the last attempt of seizing his frustration, Caesar put his hand on Helen's shoulder. The woman turned toward his direction and hit him with her overly pale fist. The punches continued now spiked up with insults and name calling. Ex-Knight's hits were weak due her long stay at hospital, her voice shaken with emotions. Caesar was just standing there, letting the fists to fall, not even moving a bit. As if it was only his body in the room while his mind wandered somewhere else.

"say you're sorry" Black Knight demanded when there was no more power in her muscles and she was short on breath.

"I'm sorry" the scientist replied mechanically. Helen wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face in his dress-shirt. She sobbed loudly, sniffing childishly. Caesar looked at her, surprise and confusion slowly showing on his face. The man's hand hesitated in the air for a split second, but then he placed it on her head, stroking her hair delicately.

Rex noticed the bandaged sticking out from his brother's shirt's sleeve, most likely, covering burns, of degree's range between first to third, on his hand and forearm. For Caesar, things randomly blowing to his face were his daily bread, but the E.V.O. wondered how many scars and wounds his older brother received during his researches. How many of them were still fresh? Scarred? Did he mind them? Were they his trophies? Or maybe shame, reminding him of his failures? Rex felt down, realizing how little he knew about his only family.

"why Iraq?" Woman murmured to the fabric of his shirt, as she finally calmed down "do you know how dangerous it's there? E.V.O.s lurk in every corner!"

"E.V.O.s lurk everywhere to you, Helen" Caesar replied "while it was the only place where they've been working on exoskeletons at advanced level"

"I hoped you would let go of your researches for a while, that you would stay with me" she finally let go of man's torso, her eyes were red. Caesar shirt was wet from her tears. "that you would support me"

"I went to Iraq to -" Caesar brows furrowed as he tried to speak out his mind "They had a promising data that I could use for - for you to … be a normal person again!"

"Caesar, I am normal… nothing has changed" The tranquillity in her voice seemed to anger older Salazar, his hands clenched into fists, jaw tightened. Helen looked at him with widened eyes. Just like Rex, she saw the scientist's anger for the first time in her life.

"What more do you want from me Helen?" Caesar said through clenched teeth "I did it all for you! why can't you understand that?"

Rex felt guilt, but he looked at the lovers' spat with amusement. The way Caesar was trying to persuade Helen his point of view, reminded him of his father - not Six, since he never viewed him as one, mentor yes, but not father - but Rafael Salazar. Just like Caesar, the Argentinian man hated to be misunderstood, not only because of lingual barriers, but also not all people understood his logic.

"I need _you_! Not your stupid inventions!" Helen admitted, those simple words caught Caesar off his guard. The heavy silence once again fell onto the room.

"I'm sorry" Caesar finally said with stern face, crossing his arms "but it's a package deal"

Suddenly Rex felt like standing on the middle of employment exchange, rather than lovers' make up. The younger Salazar didn't even know his brother knew how to _bargain_.

"I see" Ex-Knight admitted with a smirk then turned to younger Salazar. Helen's voice had similar, yet softer, timbre as during her Providence leadership. "Rex, could you leave us alone for a moment?"

"Caesar, sit-" Helen continued "- no, not on a chair, on a bed, next to me. I see that we have few things to sort out" Helen clumsily moved aside and patted on the free space next to her. Caesar sat on the edge, hard to tell if he was simply afraid to have a contact with Helen's body or was it to not to cut off possible way of quick escape.

After Rex was officially kicked out of the room, both adults talked. Wanted or nor, Rex was overhearing muffed smithereens of their conversation as he waited outside the room.

"…_and the black haired woman in Iraq!_" Helen exclaimed

"_Chispa?_" Caesar asked troubled "_what about her?"_

"_Who is she to you?"_ the woman nagged

"_She's an intern… working in my team… a great asset if you ask me_" Caesar said calmly as if Helen was asking him about the weather not about possible 'threat' to their, slowly establishing, relationship.

Apart of casual conversation, there were also some shouting and quarrelling in English, Russian and Spanglish. There was few times where the couple on the other side of the door was completely silent for long minutes. But all in all, the more the conversation went on and on the more Rex felt uncomfortable listening to it. The curing E.V.O.'s ears and cheeks were all red from nervousness as felt like eavesdropping a very intimate moment. Teen started to feel uncomfortable on his chair, feeling like he shouldn't be sitting there any-more.

"_I've never really felt… you know… _'love'_." _Caesar awkwardly admitted "_I don't get the whole idea of '_it will all 'click' to the right pace, once you encounter it, hijo_' . As a teen I even tried to make a proper research about '_it_' but there were too many conflicting examples all over the Internet, books, songs, movies… furthermore none of them were specific or reliable enough to even start. To sum up, the research about '_love_' was my greatest failure"_

It was highly probable that it was the closest thing to love confession, the older Salazar has ever voiced out. Yet before Rex could have a chance to hear Helen's reply, he left his post.

That was a wise decision. The woman's words – just as the rest of their conversation - was not for Rex's ears to hear.

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><p>comments, advices, constructive criticism etc. are always <strong>welcomed<strong> and **appreciated**!


	5. Epilogue

_**Disclaimer:**_ I _**do not**_ own GeneratorREX – if I did the show would definitely be ranked **R** rather than PG.

**A/N1:** Beware of AU, OoC-ness and OCs. But do not fret overally this story IS readable.

**Vocabulary:** _Мама_(Russian) – mama/mom/mum/etc; _Papá _(Spanish) – dad/daddy/etc;_ Que (_Spanish) – what?; _Tío _(Spanish)/Дядя(Russian) – uncle

**A/N2:** I just like happy endings ok?

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><p><strong>Prize of Victory<strong>

**Epilogue**

_By your-biohazardous-friend_

"_After all my searching  
>After all my questions<br>(…)_

_I got a brand new mindset  
>I can finally see the sunset<br>I'm gonna call it home"_ – This is home/ Switchfoot

Telling that the Salazar's house was located at outskirt of town would be a terrible lie. The way to the household was, first of all, very long, second of all, it was boring by any type of flying vehicles, bumpy by off-road car (any other type of car wasn't sufficient enough), inconvenient by all-terrain bike and a hell to cross by feet. Every time Rex decided to pay his brother a visit, he re-discovered why he was doing it so rarely. But every time he was close enough to see where he exactly was living Rex also remembered why, despite her disabilities, Helen wasn't having a divorce case with his crazy brother.

The household - once a ruin, renovated from a scratch by Caesar - was a self-sufficient complex now, having not only livestock, greenhouses full of plants but also electricity provided by renewable energy of which collectors were build into almost every square inch of the place. On top of that everything was top notch, looked stylish and, what's even more important, perfectly _normal_. The place was located in the middle of never ending fields, which were stretching to the horizon and beyond, few trees growing along the road were inviting to rest under them with the sun high on the sky. The young adult sighed, lost in a beautiful view.

"_Tío_!" sudden calling brought Rex from his musing. The childish voice belonged to a small girl, no older than seven years old. She swiftly approached the Curing E.V.O. and clung to his leg.

"Elisa!" Rex laughed as he peeled the little girl from his limb, hugged her tightly to his chest and gave her a big, sloppy kiss on her cheek. The girl giggled as his goatee brushed her face. Elisa Salazar was the most adorable set of DNA Rex had ever met in his whole life. She looked like a oriental mixture of her parents: Caesar's nose, Helen's eyes, darker(yet paler than her father's) skin-tone and short, thick, black hair with purple highlights which were sticking in every direction possible.

After a while another girl approached him, huffing tiredly - visibly not used to physical exhaustion. She was fair skinned, with neatly braided, long, dark brown hair, dressed in a green uniform of prestigious elementary school.

"Eli-" the older girl huffed between hungry draughts of air, not yet aware of Rex's presence. "you shouldn't run off like that, Aunt Helen sa-"

"Yue?" Rex asked the other girl, putting his nice to the ground "what are you doing here?"

Yue Holiday's green eyes were visibly showing her calm and collected nature. The girl was very mature for her age - a polar opposition of always curious, adventurous and hyperactive, Elisa.

"mom and dad dropped me here this morning, mom is attending a symposium this evening. Dad is helping Captain Calan with-"

"Consortium?" Rex guessed, Six's daughter nodded in response. Few years after another Knight had been selected Consortium's true colours were shown. With help of two _unnamed_ informants, Diane Farrah managed to reveal the truth about the five men: It's not fixing things which the board of five whished to achieve, but to gain Meta-nanites. All in all those men were nothing more than hungry for power buffoons.

World was struck with panic, everyone were preparing for upcoming slavery… except Caesar. Every time he was asked about Metas, as an original contributor to the Nanite Project, Latin-American calmly repeated, again and again, that "_panic is not necessary_", "_just trust me on this one_" and "_what do we have on dinner today, Helen_". Maybe Caesar knew something that Consortium didn't? Maybe the location of the last Control Nanite, which the five men were searching for so desperately? Or maybe the scientist had an ace in his sleeve, a fail-safe perhaps? Overally, seeing laid-back Caesar working on everything _except_ stopping Consortium was a calming sigh.

"don't worry, they both will be back soon" Rex said to his 'other niece' and, to Yue's irritation, ruffled the girl's hair, messing her ideally neat haircut. The girl shrugged her arms defeated and went toward the household, soon disappearing in high grass.

"_Дядя_!" Elisa started to, yet again, demand her relative's attention "have you heard? Have you heard?"

"_Que_?" Rex questioned, turning his head toward the girl.

„_Мама_ moved her toes yesterday!" the girl chirped "_Papá_ told me!"

Rex looked at his niece with widen eyes, his sister-in-law was unbelievable. She achieved things that most of medical doctors claimed she never would. Survive the injuries, wake up from coma, have a child and, last but not least, have a chance to walk again.

"that's great news, Elisa!" Rex finally exclaimed. Of course it was! Both Helen and Caesar worked very hard for this. Rex still remembered that after the faithful conversation at hospital. Caesar locked himself in his lab to come out months later with few dozen of contraptions based on the knowledge he gained at Iraq. Those inventions, with exoskeletons supporting whole or part of their wielder's body, artificial limbs, spines or even whole nervous systems among them, changed medical fields of rehabilitation forever, taking it decades into the future within only few years. Latin-American scientist's achievements were already topics for several doctoral thesis' and medical debates. The scientist himself received several prestigious awards – with Nobel prize among them – all of them were getting dusty, piled up in the cardboard box somewhere at the attic, already forgotten by Caesar himself, for whom they were nothing more than trinkets of no value. Sadly despite all his previous efforts, Helen was not even close to regain her abilities to walk. Until now.

"uhu-uh" the girl confirmed "I'm sure mom will show you if you ask her politely" Elisa took his hand and pulled him to hurry up. Rex smiled and followed her.

Several minutes later they both reached the household. With corner of his eye, Rex found Yue already sitting under a tree, reading a bulky book, from time to time she was darting a hopeful look to her cell-phone lying next to her on the blanket. After some scouting Rex found his brother and sister-in-law dozing off in the sun, stretched on the military blanket at the back of the house, 'hidden' in high grass. Caesar was lying flat on his back, barefooted, wearing shorts and tacky, colourful aloha shirt with dolphins. Helen had an airy, deep blue, dress. If not nasty, uneven scars scattered all over her legs, it would be hard to guess that there were anything wrong with her lower limbs.

Even though it wasn't so uncommon to see Caesar outside his lab nowadays, it was still odd for Rex to witness. It's not that the older brother lost his ability to can, quite opposite, the scientist's head had never been so full of ideas before. It's just he finally found a purpose to spend more time 'outside', in the 'real world'. Eating meals together, tucking in his daughter to sleep, helping his wife with exercises and rehabilitation… Of course all those events could exist without him just fine, but the question was _why?_

"_Мама_, show uncle Rex your toes!" Elisa exclaimed and, with precision known only to children, jumped between her parents. Caesar _ugh-_ed as the small limbs hit his stomach but said nothing. The older man raised his hand in welcoming gesture toward his younger sibling. Rex mimicked, thus ending the welcoming celebrations.

"Elisa! stop being such blabbermouth" Helen scolded her daughter. Elisa cringed. Caesar tried to suppress a smile.

"It's not a great deal" the woman continued, turning to Rex "nothing to show-off with"

"ah, come on! don't be like that" Rex nagged "last time I witnessed your legs work was when you kicked me in the guts, which hurt like hell and was years ago!"

"you can miss it, if you won't focus hard enough" Caesar mocked. It was Caesar's turn to receive a cold, _I-am-not-amused_ look. The man was slightly better at surpassing an urge to draw back, thus ending up doing only a vague movement with his shoulders.

"so?" Rex asked

"so, so, I've been showing my trick to you for a past white, but you prefer to admire my husband's submission instead" Caesar emitted a victorious snort, to which he received a light punch to his side, it only caused more laughter which, in this case, turned out to be highly contagious. Soon whole family was almost suffocating from uncontrollable laughter.

Rex was first to calm down and watched at his family struggle to regain their breaths. Who would have though those few years back, that the tragedy, which almost permanently tore their lives apart, would end up having such a joyful ending?

The end/_fin/Конец_

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><p><em>comments, advices, constructive criticism etc. are always <strong>welcomed<strong> and **appreciated**!_


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